Smell: Remarkably sweet aroma with a distinct lager character, not unlike a schwarzbier.

Taste: I love collaboration brews because they tend to be experimental
and unusual, though in the case of Jurata, Cigar City and Coronado
Brewing seemed to have played it completely safe. They’ve brewed an
exactly-to-spec Baltic Porter and made an excellent one at that. No
weird ingredients or eccentric approach here, which is rather unusual
for these breweries – which is what makes it unique.

The palate opens up with a lightly sweet taste of cola and a touch of
dark chocolate and roasted malt. It has a distinct lager quality to it,
making great use of its Baltic Porter style (it’s not trying to be a
stout). Additional sweetness on the finish akin to that found in milk
stouts due to lactose sugar. A slight dairy/milky/vanilla character can
be found on the backend as well. It’s delectable to be sure, though the
flavors are still constrained enough to not be cloying (or mind-blowing,
unfortunately). Still, there is nothing to dislike and everything to
enjoy about this beer.

Drinkability: What makes Jurata so successful isn’t just its palate, but
the way it drinks – like the lager it is. The mouthfeel is on the
thinner side with consistent crispness. It’s not thick and syrupy the
way an imperial stout would be. It’s even refreshing for a moment while
in the mouth, and goes down extremely smooth with no warmth from the 8%
ABV at all. It makes full use of its potential, though at no point is it
dense or obese. This should be packaged in 12oz bottles and sold as
six-packs.

63.3 - 3.5B-ABOVE AVERAGEThe lowest I can rate a beer and still honestly give it a thumbs up. The attributes are enough to overshadow the flaws. Nothing I'd jump for joy about, but a drinkable, satisfactory beer to be sure.

53.0 - 3.2C+AVERAGE/NEUTRALNot quite a good beer, not quite a bad beer. I don't have a strong opinion either way about it. There may be something to like here, but there's also something holding it back.

42.8 - 2.9CBELOW AVERAGEThe best of the worst. A beer with noticeable flaws and perhaps some minor attributes. Tolerable for a serving, but no reason to seek it out. A genuine thumbs down, but not something I despise.

32.6 - 2.7C-TOLERABLEWhile not the worst beer, there's probably nothing about it that I like. Plenty of off-putting features. I can tolerate a single serving, but would recommend avoiding it.